KUALA LUMPUR: Stocks could advance but overall trading may be lacklustre in the absence of strong newsflow to lure investors on Wednesday, March 30 as long as uncertainties in the Middle-east, the aftermath of the Japan earthquake and high oil prices continue to sap confidence.
On Wall Street, strength in energy lifted U.S. stocks on Tuesday, as investors concentrated on adding to winning positions as the quarter winds down, but uncertainty kept trading volume light.
The Dow Jones industrial average gained 81.13 points, or 0.67 percent, to 12,279.01. The Standard & Poor's 500 rose 9.25 points, or 0.71 percent, to 1,319.44. The Nasdaq Composite added 26.21 points, or 0.96 percent, to 2,756.89.
The S&P 500 index has risen 4.9 percent in the first three months of the year, which would be its seventh positive quarter in the last eight.
Stocks to watch are ECM Libra Financial Group Bhd, KENCANA PETROLEUM BHD [], EKOVEST BHD [] and MALAYSIAN RESOURCES CORP []oration Bhd (MRCB), MALAYSIAN AIRLINE SYSTEM BHD [] (MAS) and AirAsia.
ECM Libra's earnings surged 250% to RM45.84 million in the fourth quarter ended Jan 31, 2011 from RM13.12 million a year ago, boosted by higher brokerage and fee income and also from trading and investment securities.
Revenue doubled to RM105.84 million from RM46.79 million a year ago ''while earnings per share were 5.61 sen. It proposed dividend of 4.25 sen per share.
For the financial year ended Jan 31, 2011, net profit rose 59.7% to RM65.21 million from RM40.81million in the previous financial year. Revenue rose 60.2% to RM214.64 million from RM133.96 million.
Kencana Petroleum Bhd has secured a RM216 million contract from Petrofac Malaysia Ltd for the CONSTRUCTION [] of well head platforms for the Cendor oil field off the coast of Terengganu.
Ekovest Bhd and Malaysian Resources Corporation Bhd (MRCB) took the River of Life project a step further with the signing of a joint venture and shareholders' agreement.
Ekovest said they had signed the agreement to regulate their rights and obligations as shareholders of and KL Bund Sdn Bhd (KLBSB) -- currently a dormant company -- which would be the project delivery partner for the project.
The International Air Transport Association (IATA) expects it to be a challenge for airlines to recover the added costs of fuel, as the industry recorded slower demand growth in February compared with January.
Based on an average oil price of US$96 per barrel, IATA is forecasting fuel to account for 29% of average operating costs with a total fuel bill of US$166 billion. For every dollar increase in the price of a barrel of oil, the industry must recover an additional US$1.6 billion in added costs.
In PETRA PERDANA BHD [], Koh Pho Wat ceased to be a substantial shareholder after disposing of one million shares on Monday at 94.5 sen a share. His direct stake was reduced to 4.78% or 21.517 million shares.
In RHB CAPITAL BHD [], the Employees Provident Fund board disposed of three million shares on''March 24, reducing its stake to 959.96 million shares or 44.58%.
On Wall Street, strength in energy lifted U.S. stocks on Tuesday, as investors concentrated on adding to winning positions as the quarter winds down, but uncertainty kept trading volume light.
The Dow Jones industrial average gained 81.13 points, or 0.67 percent, to 12,279.01. The Standard & Poor's 500 rose 9.25 points, or 0.71 percent, to 1,319.44. The Nasdaq Composite added 26.21 points, or 0.96 percent, to 2,756.89.
The S&P 500 index has risen 4.9 percent in the first three months of the year, which would be its seventh positive quarter in the last eight.
Stocks to watch are ECM Libra Financial Group Bhd, KENCANA PETROLEUM BHD [], EKOVEST BHD [] and MALAYSIAN RESOURCES CORP []oration Bhd (MRCB), MALAYSIAN AIRLINE SYSTEM BHD [] (MAS) and AirAsia.
ECM Libra's earnings surged 250% to RM45.84 million in the fourth quarter ended Jan 31, 2011 from RM13.12 million a year ago, boosted by higher brokerage and fee income and also from trading and investment securities.
Revenue doubled to RM105.84 million from RM46.79 million a year ago ''while earnings per share were 5.61 sen. It proposed dividend of 4.25 sen per share.
For the financial year ended Jan 31, 2011, net profit rose 59.7% to RM65.21 million from RM40.81million in the previous financial year. Revenue rose 60.2% to RM214.64 million from RM133.96 million.
Kencana Petroleum Bhd has secured a RM216 million contract from Petrofac Malaysia Ltd for the CONSTRUCTION [] of well head platforms for the Cendor oil field off the coast of Terengganu.
Ekovest Bhd and Malaysian Resources Corporation Bhd (MRCB) took the River of Life project a step further with the signing of a joint venture and shareholders' agreement.
Ekovest said they had signed the agreement to regulate their rights and obligations as shareholders of and KL Bund Sdn Bhd (KLBSB) -- currently a dormant company -- which would be the project delivery partner for the project.
The International Air Transport Association (IATA) expects it to be a challenge for airlines to recover the added costs of fuel, as the industry recorded slower demand growth in February compared with January.
Based on an average oil price of US$96 per barrel, IATA is forecasting fuel to account for 29% of average operating costs with a total fuel bill of US$166 billion. For every dollar increase in the price of a barrel of oil, the industry must recover an additional US$1.6 billion in added costs.
In PETRA PERDANA BHD [], Koh Pho Wat ceased to be a substantial shareholder after disposing of one million shares on Monday at 94.5 sen a share. His direct stake was reduced to 4.78% or 21.517 million shares.
In RHB CAPITAL BHD [], the Employees Provident Fund board disposed of three million shares on''March 24, reducing its stake to 959.96 million shares or 44.58%.
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